Have you had enough to eat yet?

Would that ever be the first question you ask someone when you greet them? My guess is probably not. For most people who live in America, this question might seem like a strange way to greet someone. Many of us take it for granted that we eat when we are hungry, and it’s not really a big deal. Why bother asking?

Well, with this American way of thinking, I came to Taiwan to teach English one year ago. I found it interesting and a little odd that this question “Have you had enough to eat yet?” is a standard greeting around here—equivalent to our American greeting “How are you?” At first I found it hard to get used to this new greeting. With my own logic, I didn’t think that asking about eating was as personal as asking someone how they are doing. I didn’t think it was a very important question to ask.

However, when I thought about it more, I realized that asking “How are you?” really is not personal at all, because we don’t know how to respond if someone answers anything other than the expected “I’m good” or “Fine, thanks.” I also found out that one of the reasons the people here ask “Have you had enough to eat yet?” is because there was a time not too long ago that the food supply was much smaller, and it genuinely was a concern that people were getting enough to eat. Even though food is plentiful here now, (and I have continually experienced the enthusiastic generosity of my Taiwanese friends to let me try ALL of their delicious foods while I’m here), I’ve come to appreciate the care and concern that people show for each other by using the unique greeting of asking if they have had enough to eat.

Well, as mentioned before, I have been living here in Taiwan for a year now, funded by WELS Kingdom Workers and teaching English outreach classes for the Taichung congregation. Since I have been here, the students I work with have extended their care and generosity in more ways than I ever expected. The people here love to treat the “foreigners” to traditional Taiwanese foods, so there have been many occasions where they have taken us to restaurants, invited us to their homes for a meal, or just taken us to a nearby food stand and sent us home with dinner-to-go. Often times, even after we tell them we HAVE had enough to eat, they will still thrust food into our hands before we can refuse.

Besides making sure we have more than enough to eat, they also have shown great kindness in making sure we get to see a lot of the interesting places in Taiwan while we are here. We have been taken on many different outings, from morning hiking trips, to weekend camping in the mountains, to snorkeling along the coast. I have climbed a giant hill made completely out of salt, sung karaoke at a hot springs campground, and hiked to the highest 7/11 convenient store in the country. For all these times our students and friends have taken us places, they have never expected anything in return, and have only reluctantly accepted even a little money for gasoline costs, etc.

Our students and friends here are also concerned about our safety while living in a large, busy city, and there is almost always a student who offers to drive us home after an evening English class so we are not walking or taking a taxi alone after dark. One student even offered that if no one else could take us home, he would ride his motorcycle alongside of us while we walked the 30-minute walk back to our apartment after class at night. In so many ways, the people here have amazed me with their thoughtfulness and concern.

They are concerned for our well-being and making sure we have had enough to eat, yet at the same time, many of the people themselves are still going hungry. Sure, there is more than enough food in the outdoor markets and stores to go around, but something is still missing. Many of their souls have not been filled with the peace of God’s love and knowledge of salvation. They have grown up learning to pray to their ancestors and other gods, and to be afraid of bad luck, evil spirits, and death. We teach them about the Bible and about God’s love in our English classes, and for many of our students, this is the very first time they are hearing the wonderful news of Jesus.

In this context, the question “Have you had enough to eat yet?” becomes vitally important. Do you remember the account of Jesus and the Samaritan woman at the water well recorded in John chapter 4:10-12? The Samaritan woman came to the well, and Jesus asked the woman for a drink of water. When she hesitated to give it to him, he told her “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.” (10)“Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is too deep. Where can you get this living water?” (11) Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” (12) The woman thought that Jesus was talking about regular drinking water—that he was only concerned about physical thirst. But Jesus was concerned about the woman’s spiritual thirst, a thirst that only he can quench through his work of salvation.

In the same way, we are here in Taiwan as God’s messengers, making sure that our students and the people we meet are getting enough to “eat” and “drink.” For those who only know the cold, stinging hunger pains of sin and death, we want to give them an opportunity to let Jesus fill their souls with living water, so they never go hungry or thirsty again. It has been such a tremendous blessing for me to share God’s Word with our 100+ students on a weekly basis, and to watch the Holy Spirit work in their hearts as they find out more about what God has done for us.

Although it would be tremendous if 100% of our students came to faith after joining a few classes, we know that not everyone who walks through the church door will become a Christian. However, we also know that the Holy Spirit is always at work, and he has the power to create faith in people’s hearts even when we think it is impossible. It is very rewarding to witness those who have already come to faith or, like the woman at the well, are curious to learn more about the living-water Jesus provides. God promises us in Isaiah 55:11 “My word…will not return to me empty, but will accomplish the purpose for which I sent it.” What a comfort it is to know that we have this one and only all-powerful God on our side, working in the hearts of people around the world who are hearing his word, and promising us that our efforts to share the gospel will not be fruitless.

Of course, you don’t have to be in Taiwan, or even in another country, to make sure those around you are getting their fill of God’s saving grace. Every time you say a word of encouragement to a fellow Christian, or invite an un-churched friend over for coffee to help answer some of their questions about the Bible, you are showing your love for God. He even tells us in the Bible, “When I was hungry, you gave me something to eat…for whatever you did for the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.” (Matthew 25:35, 40) God wants us to help take care of each other’s spiritual hunger, no matter WHERE we are or WHO we serve, because we are ultimately serving the Lord.

As the missions here and around the world continue to share God’s word, I am thankful to have so many dedicated brothers and sisters in Christ who are supporting our work. It is my hope that we continue to support one another in any way possible, whether financially, or sending notes of encouragement to the missionaries, or through prayer. Pray that the Lord will guide the leaders of our church, giving them the wisdom to oversee both the home and foreign mission fields. Pray that God would give each one of us a heart of complete humility and service to His kingdom. And pray that the Holy Spirit will work in the hearts of those souls around the world who have not yet been filled, so that we can ALL feast together one day at God’s great banquet he has prepared for us, and never go hungry or thirsty again.

Kristin Lehmann is a KW in Taiwan working with the WELS Mission family, Rev Kevin and Sarah Stellick.